In that time US air force had mission to drop food from airplanes from high altitudes as a part of the mission to help surrounded cities(not only mine) there was not any kind of schedule, or right place to wait for them, it was matter of luck. I ll try to describe one waiting for MRE (it was not only MRE, but we called it, hunt for MRE )

At first real dark we took rifle (if you had it) or any kind of weapon, and go out, usually 3-4 men, never alone. Some 2-3 miles from my house there was hill, it used to be dense wood, but soon it was naked because need for firewood, so imagine bunch of people climbing on that hill, complete darkness, maybe 300-500 people every night, and waiting for the distant sound of airplane, it was matter of luck, i guess because they dropped that things from high altitude they just never know where they gonna go.

Funny thing was that few miles across that hill was another hill, on that another hill was enemy army, they usually shoot every half hour on our hill with PAT (anti aircraft cannon) in dark, without aiming, because they knew we are there. They could not see us, but i guess they did not need to see us, every time they hit someone.

On the other side, most of the folks were armed, we fight regularly between us on that hill, for better position behind some rock, or to get some pallete with parachute. It was regularly to see guy climbing with his buddies on pallets full of flour , loading his rifle with statement ” OK this is mine” If you and your friends had more fire power, you tried to convice him somehow 🙂

So if you had luck and plains dropped something useful right on that hill, you still mostly needed to fight for that.

Many many years later, after peace came, when i had MRE s again in hands, i just felt strange, i wanted to cry and laugh in same time.
Other important thing was with that airplanes missions, we just felt that we are not forgotten, that somewhere somebody thinks about us, sometimes that was more important than food.

6 responses to “Getting MREs”

I was a mechanic on the planes that made those drops. I have always wondered if they ever made a difference…and your statement that “we just felt that we are not forgotten, that somewhere somebody thinks about us, sometimes that was more important than food”….

I think it’s important for people here in the U.S. to remember a key point. Unlike what happened to the people in Selco’s part of the world, when it happens here there will be no air drops. When it finally gets bad enough in our corner of the world, the U.N. won’t be coming to our aid, because we make up the vast majority of the U.N.’s might when it comes to “doing”. When it happens here, the rest of the western world is sure to follow if it hasn’t gone already at that point because consumers here drive the world market. It won’t be civil war that launches us into the stone age. More than likely it will be a financial collapse like the one we barely avoided a few years back. If that’s the case, there won’t be MRE drops to count on. I’m only pointing this out so that people on this side of the world don’t get any false ideas in their heads about rescue coming from the outside. We ARE the rescue to the rest of the world, regardless of how large or small an impact we make in those situations. That’s not to say I won’t be keeping what I read here in mind in the event I’m wrong about this. 🙂 I find everything I’m reading on this site incredibly helpful Mr. Selco and thank you for putting the effort into sharing your stories and insights. Keep up the good work.

It’s fashionably and politically correct to hate the U.S. but it’s good to hear you speak of the U.S. dropping food and, for the most part, that is common about Americans – at least food – we love to give and help. It’s touching, to say the least, that our hard-earned tax dollars actually went to a decent cause and you now speak as a beneficiary. I just wish America would return to its old ways without a corrupt government so we can, once again, contribute to the world. most Americans have not changed at heart especially in the “heartland” of the U.S. but our gov’t is too bloated and conceited to care about our wishes any more and move in ways for exploitation and their own political agenda. I certain fear the roles may be reversed soon.

Nothing is just black or just white, there is whole bunch of mixed colors in everything, so to hate whole country or group of people is wrong, actually it is stupid and just does not make sense.You are right that now is fashionably and politically correct to hate US. But i always hated to be “politically correct” and i just do not follow fashion. I like to make my own conclusions and to think with my own head. When man lost ability to think with his own head, and when mainstream media gets him, or popular political opinion, he is lost.
Most of the guys who are making big decisions do not care for simple folks anyway.